Ouch-less Flu Vaccines, Coming Soon

Filed in archive Drugs, Vaccines and Therapeutics , Other Biotechnology News on July 21, 2010

© samantha celera

With the recent development of flu vaccines in the form of Band-Aid like patches, not only can the vaccine be self-administered painlessly, but it can also be ordered and delivered through the mail.

The vaccine patches actually contain microneedles that are just three hundredths of an inch in size and only feel like fine sandpaper. These microneedles also dissolve within 15 minutes of application on the skin so there's no need for special disposal procedures, as there will be no leftover sharp needles.

The patient-friendly vaccine is the product of research by a team from Georgia Institute of Technology headed by researcher Mark Prausnitz. The said research - which was supported by the National Institutes of Health- produced successfully test results on mice.

The patches were found to deliver the correct doses of the vaccine and showed no harmful effects if left attached for more than 15 minutes. This groundbreaking discovery is anticipated to be available for human use in five years.